Comparing himself to his Oscar-winning father is "so hard," says Ray Nicholson
Ray Nicholson reflects on how growing up with a Hollywood legend wasn’t all red carpets—and the realization that reshaped his career outlook.
On the red carpet at AFI Fest on Oct. 22, Ray Nicholson didn’t pretend the comparisons are easy. Asked about growing up under Jack Nicholson’s legend, he admitted the weight of that name used to creep into the most basic acting drills.
“It ’s so hard,”
he said of trying to learn the craft while the bar at home was three Oscars high. Early on, he found himself sizing up Meisner exercises against a five-decade career — a surefire way to freeze up. Now 34, Nicholson says he’s reset the scoreboard, zeroing in on one performance at a time and taking satisfaction from steady improvement.
The family resemblance isn’t exactly subtle. His unnerving smile in Smile 2 this year instantly sparked The Shining callbacks — a likeness director Parker Finn clocked, too. At home, there’s less mystique and more practical advice: Nicholson recalls his dad once praising a performance because the camera kept cutting back to him, a simple note that stuck.
WWII on the gridiron
Next up is a very different arena. Peter Berg’s The Mosquito Bowl tracks four standout college football players who enlist in the Marines after Pearl Harbor, culminating in a makeshift Christmas Eve game on Guadalcanal in 1944 as they prepare for the invasion of Okinawa. The film is based on Buzz Bissinger’s nonfiction book.
- Ray Nicholson — Tony Butkovich
- Nicholas Galitzine — John McLaughry
- Bill Skarsgård — Bob Bauman
- Tom Francis — David Schreiner
After its AFI Fest bow on Oct. 22, The Mosquito Bowl opens in select theaters Oct. 30 before streaming on Netflix Nov. 25.